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Longer Hospice Stays Lead to Larger Medicare Cost Savings

Hospice News

All told, hospice care — regardless of length of stay — saves Medicare approximately $3.5 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the U.S. The post Longer Hospice Stays Lead to Larger Medicare Cost Savings appeared first on Hospice News.

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4 Ways Hospices Are Pursuing Growth in 2023

Hospice News

In 2023, the focus for many is to not only expand their core business but to spread further into the care continuum. The below comments were taken from original interviews, conducted in person and via the phone, throughout early 2023.

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VITAS Expects Recruitment Gains to Spur 2023 Growth, Revenue

Hospice News

The company expects the program to bring in roughly 25 new health care workers each month in 2023 at an estimated cost of $40 million, which VITAS hopes to offset with increased volume as staffing gains drive up capacity. “We Chemed Corp.

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Why CMS Extended VBID, MA Hospice Carve-In

Hospice News

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) decision to extend the value-based insurance design (VBID) model through 2030: patients’ social needs, health equity and improved care coordination. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesThree main factors drove the U.S.

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Telling the ‘Story of Hospice’ in 2023: Perspectives from 8 Industry Leaders

Hospice News

If you were to write a book about hospice in 2023, what would you call it? We’ve heard from the [Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC)] on the 20% payment cap reduction. Is Medicare Advantage going to be the path?

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OIG Estimates $42 Million in Improper Medicare Payments for Advance Care Planning

Hospice News

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) recently reported the results of its audit of advance care planning (ACP) billing practices among Medicare-certified physicians and other health care providers.

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New Research Shows Hospice Care Reduces Medicare Costs

NHPCO

For Immediate Release March 22, 2023 New Research Shows Hospice Care Reduces Medicare Costs Hospice Care Contributed to $3.5 billion in savings for Medicare in 2019, while providing multiple benefits to patients, families, and caregivers.

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MedPAC Calls for Hospice Payment Cap Wage Adjustment, 20% Cut

Hospice News

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has once again recommended a 20% cut to the aggregate cap for hospice payments. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) set the 2023 cap at $32,486.92, up from nearly $31,300 per patient for Fiscal Year 2022.

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MEDICARE PART B PREMIUMS TO DECREASE IN 2023

Elder Care Matters

Medicare Part B Premiums to Decrease in 2023 For the first time in over a decade, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced that Medicare beneficiaries will enjoy a lower premium in 2023.

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CMS Extends Hospice VBID Through 2030

Hospice News

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is extending the value-based insurance design demonstration for calendar years 2025 to 2030, including the hospice component. In 2023, the number of MA plans will swell to 3,998, up 6% from 2022. This entire Medicare Advantage.

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How Medicare Budget Neutrality Impacts Hospice Payment

Hospice News

Medicare reimbursement is the lifeblood of hospice providers, and a clear understanding of policies like budget neutrality can help elucidate the payment systems that keep their businesses running. But a similar move within the Medicare Hospice Benefit is unlikely.

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Medicare Changes Retirees Need to Know About

Comforcare Home Care

Here are some Medicare changes you might want to know about. Medicare will be able to negotiate drug prices (starting in 2023). Out-of-pocket insulin costs will be capped at $35/month for Medicare. participants (starting in 2023).

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Hospice VBID: Understanding the 2023 Program Modifications

Hospice News

1, 2023, meaning that some of the program’s rules will change. Often called the MA hospice carve-in , the voluntary demonstration is designed to assess payer and provider performance related to hospice within Medicare Advantage (MA).

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Medicare Home Health Cuts Could Have Ripple Effect on Hospice, Palliative Care

Hospice News

Margin pressures from the proposed cuts to Medicare home health rates could impact palliative care and hospice. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in June released its proposed home health reimbursement rule for 2023, which included a 4.2%

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RAND Corp.: Families Report Better Care from Nonprofit Hospices

Hospice News

Nearly all hospices were nonprofit organizations at the time the Medicare benefit was established in 1982, but in terms of sheer numbers the balance has shifted toward for-profits in the intervening years.

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CMS Final Rule Gives Hospice 3.8% Pay Raise for 2023

Hospice News

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will give hospices a 3.8% bump in their per diem payments for 2023, according to a final rule published today. Pay Raise for 2023 appeared first on Hospice News. The U.S.

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Navigating the VBID hospice benefit in 2023

HEALTHCARE first

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) first launched its value-based insurance design (VBID) model in 2021. The model tests Medicare Advantage health plan innovations designed to reduce Medicare spending and improve the quality and delivery of care for Medicare beneficiaries.

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Is Hospice Losing Its Way: A Podcast with Ira Byock and Joseph Shega

GeriPal

JAMA IM 2023 A shout-out to my NPR episode on 1A titled the “State of Hospice Care” DISCLAIMER While we filmed in Montreal during the Annual Assembly, all opinions expressed in this podcast are independent of AAHPM and HPNA, or the Annual Assembly.

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MA Beneficiaries More Likely than Fee-for-Service Patients to Enter Hospice from Community Setting

Hospice News

Medicare Advantage (MA) beneficiaries are more likely to enroll in hospice from a community setting than patients in traditional fee-for-service programs. In 2011, for example, 50% of MA patients came to hospice from the community, compared to 39% of those in traditional Medicare.

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Systematic Change Needed to Support Family Caregivers of Hospice Patients

Hospice News

At the same time, the ratio of potential caregivers to seriously ill seniors is expected to shrink to 4-to-1 by 2023, a “sharp decline” from 7-to-1 in 2010, AARP reported. Some Medicare Advantage plans also offer some caregiver support services as a supplemental benefit.

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Facility-Bound Hospice Patients Less Likely to Get SIA Visits

Hospice News

Hospice providers in facility-based settings may be underutilizing Medicare’s service intensity add-on (SIA). Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) introduced SIA in 2016.

2023 209
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Gentiva Inks Deal to Acquire Heartland Hospice from ProMedica for $710 Million

Hospice News

In 2021, 80,150 Medicare beneficiaries in Ohio utilized the hospice benefit, according to the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2023.

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Key Trends That Will Shape the Hospice Industry in 2023

Hospice News

Most hospices are sliding into 2023 between a rock and a hard place, beset by headwinds, labor shortages and questions with no easy answers. Government oversight of hospice providers will tighten during 2023.

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National Hospice Leaders Urge CMS and Congress to Advance Program Integrity in Hospice Care through Effective Oversight

NHPCO

Enforce against non-operational hospices by revoking Medicare enrollment and increasing site visits: Investigate Medicare provider numbers that show aberrant gaps in Medicare billing. Press Release 2023 Press Releases

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SCAN Group, CareOregon to Combine as HealthRight Group in 2023

Hospice News

SCAN Group and CareOregon have agreed to join forces in 2023 as a new organization called HealthRight Group. The new nonprofit will combine SCAN’s Medicare portfolio with CareOregon’s predominantly Medicaid health plans. The legacy SCAN would become the Medicare division of the company.

2023 245
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Hospice Organizations Call for Change as Lawmakers Eye Program Integrity

Hospice News

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), asking for the agency to brief them on fraud and abuse within the hospice benefit. Arizona had 239 new Medicare-certified hospices appear between 2018 and 2022, representing 52% of all providers in the state.

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Hospice, Palliative Care Leaders Foresee a ‘New Normal’ for 2023

Hospice News

Both hospice providers and regulatory agencies are expected to continue efforts toward establishing a new normal, post-pandemic; 2023 could also bring operational impacts associated with the likely lifting of some of the waivers that have been in place during the public health emergency.

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LeadingAge to Congress: Reform Hospice Benefit, Fund Palliative Care

Hospice News

The Medicare Hospice Benefit should allow some concurrent care, and Congress should support greater access to palliative care, among other reforms, according to LeadingAge.

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CMS Issues Final Rule for MA Risk Adjustment Audits

Hospice News

Many hospice providers rely on Medicare Advantage (MA) reimbursement to support palliative care, PACE and social determinants programs, among others. By establishing our approach to RADV audits through this regulation, we are protecting access to Medicare both now and for future generations.

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Voices: Drew Bringhurst, Chief Commercial Officer, Hospice Dynamix

Hospice News

There was not yet a platform that could automate a Medicare cap calculation, and there wasn’t a means to quickly identify patients that would inevitably be subject to external audits. This article is sponsored by Hospice Dynamix.

2023 246
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Amedisys Announces New Contracting Agreement with BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee for Home-Based Palliative Care

Hospice News

Nasdaq: AMED) has repeatedly voiced its enthusiasm for its palliative care business in early 2023. Amedisys projects its higher-acuity care segment’s revenue to more than triple in 2023, however, largely driven by growth in the Palliative Care at Home arm.

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Nonprofit Hospices See Rebound in Thrift Store, Resale Revenue

Hospice News

But in late 2022 and early 2023, providers are seeing signs of recovery. As Graham pointed out, many hospices use thrift store revenue to support services that aren’t fully covered by the Medicare Hospice Benefit or other payer sources.

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Hospices Work to Recruit More Volunteers Before COVID PHE Ends

Hospice News

Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) removes the waiver of volunteer requirements instituted during the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE). 11, 2023, but will likely be extended through at least April.

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VITAS Opens New, Permanent Inpatient Unit at Florida Hospital

Hospice News

Construction began in January 2023, and the facility recently began admitting patients. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). VITAS Healthcare, a subsidiary of Chemed Corp. NYSE: CHEM), has expanded one of its inpatient hospice units in Florida.

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Advance Care Planning Billing Rules Impede Equitable Access

Hospice News

On the patient side, Medicare beneficiaries face out-of-pocket costs when advance care planning is performed in any setting outside of an annual wellness visit. the bill proposed to remove Medicare beneficiary cost-sharing while also widening the scope of staff who can bill for these services.

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[UPDATED] Optum Closes $5.4 Billion LHC Group Acquisition

Hospice News

The two companies initially expected to complete the deal last year, but later indicated a Q1 2023 closing date. A key attractor is the potential cost savings associated with risk-based payment systems like Medicare Advantage, in which UnitedHealth Care is one of the largest players. “I’d

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UnitedHealth Group CEO: Home-Based Care Resonates Strongly with Payers

Hospice News

A key attractor is the potential cost savings associated with risk-based payment systems like Medicare Advantage, in which UnitedHealth Care is of the largest players. All in all, Optum expects to care for 750,000 new value-based patients during 2023 alone, the company reported.

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Hospices Welcome Expanded Chaplain Services Codes, Seek Clarity on Applicability

Hospice News

Hospices are seeking greater clarity on updated Medicare rules that allow hospices to document a broader range of chaplain services on claims. The U.S.

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NAHC, NHPCO Seek Greater Collaboration with ‘All Options’ on the Table’

Hospice News

Recently, this included efforts related to program integrity within the Medicare Hospice Benefit. The National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) and the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) are exploring opportunities for more formalized collaboration.

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Hospice CEOs: Action Needed on Staffing, Value-Based Care, Oversight

Hospice News

Hospice executives in December 2022 shared their predictions for what would happen in the space during 2023. Another focus for providers this year should be adapting towards risk-based payment models or the potential for hospice coverage through Medicare Advantage (MA), some executives say.

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Behind Amedisys’ Embrace of At-Risk Palliative Care

Hospice News

As Medicare Advantage and Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) continue to gain ground, Amedisys is positioning itself to deliver palliative care at a larger scale. Reimbursement for palliative care in fee-for-service Medicare currently only covers physician or nurse practitioner services.

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Addus Expects ‘Bit of Bumpiness’ in Hospice, Looks to Further Grow Home Health Business

Hospice News

That path will divert more toward home health and personal care – and less in the direction of hospice – as 2023 progresses. Addus anticipates positive staffing trends to continue in 2023, partly fed by the company’s recruitment efforts, Addus CEO Dirk Allison said in an earnings call.

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Study: Machine Learning Prompts Earlier Advance Care Planning, Reduces High-Cost Care

Hospice News

of all Black, Hispanic, American Indian, Asian and Pacific Islander Medicare beneficiaries in the study, compared to 0.9% Mortality predictions and behavioral nudges by machine learning systems are associated with increased advance care planning utilization and reductions in high-acuity care.

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